Okay, so today's story doesn't come from the usual source. Once again, I found a prompt on Pinterest, and I couldn't pass it up.

If you'd like to hear the audio version, complete with background music and sound effects, click here.

“Hey, I said not to look at those things!”

Marcus jumped and dropped the model ship as his brother stormed into the room. Jay’s eyes got big, and he dove for the falling bit of plastic. Marcus stammered out an apology Jay didn’t seem to hear.

Everything went bright and washed out like an overexposed video, causing Marcus to clinch his eyes and duck. A weird low thrumming sounded in the room and got louder until it was almost painful. Marcus’ stomach felt like it did a flip, and he got dizzy. Then the thrum stopped and the light faded as quick as it began, throwing him even more off balance than he’d been before.

Marcus opened his eyes and threw his arms out, trying to catch himself as he fell, but there was nothing to grab onto. He hit his rear hard enough to knock the breath out of him. Yet, even if he hadn’t, the room he found himself in now would have left him just as breathless.

Somehow they’d gone from Jay’s crammed bedroom to somewhere he’d never seen before. It was a small room that looked like it was made of some kind of metal. Odd lights glowed from the ceiling, walls, and even some spots on the floor. The air was cold and smelled stale, and there was a rumble Marcus could feel through the floor and not quite hear. Other than them, there only seemed to be a few panels across the room.

“Great! Now you’ve done it.”

“What happened?” Marcus asked as he got off the floor.

“You just killed my career,” Jay growled as he messed around with the model. “Why can’t you just, for once, leave my stuff alone?”

“Well, it looked cool,” replied Marcus. “I wanted a closer look, and I was careful.”

“Oh real careful. Throwing it on the floor.”

“Hey! That wasn’t…”

A whooshing sound interrupted Marcus’ protest. Both boys turned to see some kind of door had slid open, and three things entered the room through it. Marcus’ eyes went wide, and his breath got caught in his throat. Whatever they were, he had a strong suspicion they weren’t from Earth.

The aliens stood about a foot taller than Jay, and he was over six foot tall! They had four legs with the back two looking like they were bent backward. The tops of their heads were almost flat and completely bald. Their cheekbones were wide and prominent, and they had huge, almost compound looking eyes. They were skinny, but something about them screamed power.

Maybe it was the talons and sharp mandibles.

Marcus whimpered, and Jay stepped in front of him. One of the aliens stepped forward and emitted a series of clicks, chirps, and buzzing sounds. Its unblinking eyes settled on Marcus, and he shrank back.

Each story in this series is 500 words or less and is prompted by a first line taken either from a random first line generator like this one or reader suggestions like "Don't Forget Me." I much prefer working from reader suggestions over generators, but to do that, I need to hear from you.